1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates generally to the harvesting of strawberries, and similar crops, and particularly to a pickup head capable of lifting a strawberry plant, and the like, into an upright position for being brought into a severing assembly, as well as to bring strawberry fruit spurs which have grown beyond the outer edge of an associated bed into position for being cut by the severing assembly.
2. Description of the Prior Art
My prior U.S. Pat. No. 3,698,171, issued Oct. 17, 1972, discloses a self-propelled strawberry harvester provided with a plurality of picking fingers which move along close to the ground so as to engage under and lift the berry clusters for a severing thereof from the plant by a sickle bar. As can be readily appreciated, a principal problem encountered in the harvesting of strawberries, and like crops, by mechanical methods involves the lifting of the crop into the sickle bar or other cutting apparatus.
It is known generally to move standing grain backwards by air blasts instead of by using a conventional reel, and the like. See, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 2,710,516, issued Jun. 14, 1955, to T. F. Kaesemeyer, Jr., et al., and U.S. Pat. No. 3,193,995, issued Jul. 13, 1965, to L. J. Miller. There is, however, no lifting effect of any kind obtained from such arrangement, nor is any lifting effect intended. In addition, it is generally known, as shown by U.S. Pat. No. 3,693,331, issued Sept. 26, 1972, to J. E. Richter, et al., to employ air jets to move leaves, twigs, and the like, which have previously been disturbed by an agitating device, and imparting a floating effect to the aforementioned elements until a suction fan discharges them.
U.S. Pat. Nos. 1,900,269, issued Mar. 7, 1933, to H. E. Altgelt, et al., and 3,165,874, issued Jan. 19, 1965, to E. H. Osteen, are also related to use of air blasts to move standing grain back into a harvesting device.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,389,543, issued Jun. 25, 1968, to C. E. Rasmussen and U.S. Pat. No. 3,760,573, issued Sept. 25, 1973, to W. W. Porter, are also believed pertinent to the present invention.